Engineering

Calling all engineers! If you're in school for engineering or you already have a degree in the field, your skills are in hot demand. A talent shortage makes engineering the hardest job to fill in the U.S., according to global staffing firm Manpower.

Other in-demand jobs include machinists and skilled manufacturing workers, sales representatives, accountants, mechanics and information technology staffers. Despite the economic downturn and regular news of layoffs, there are still fields that simply aren't getting enough people entering the professions, a new Manpower survey shows.

Help Wanted

In-Demand Workers

By TARA WEISS

According to FORBES:
The Bureau of Labor Statistics doesn't collect data on the gap between the supply and demand of employees in specific fields, says Tracy Jack, a BLS spokesperson. That means the Manpower survey offers a rare opportunity to examine recruiting challenges by sector.

"We're dealing with an HR paradox," says Melanie Holmes, a Manpower vice president. "Unemployment is going up in the U.S., but nearly a quarter of the employers we talked to are struggling to find talent. It's not a shortage of warm bodies, it's a shortage of people with the right skills."

When it comes to engineering, hiring managers aren't likely to find a glut of applicants any time soon. Fewer than 10% of graduating college students in the U.S. are studying engineering. "That says there is such a low percentage pursuing those engineering degrees," says Paul Holley, a Manpower spokesman. The global push to find renewable energy sources means engineers are needed to design technology to find those sources.

One of the most needed types of engineers, those that find and recoup petroleum, are practically going extinct. The problem: 40% of all petroleum engineers in the U.S. are over age 50 and nearing retirement. Combine that with the slowdown in students majoring in engineering and the future of the industry is unclear.